General Beltings is being forced to rethink its production strategy as a credit squeeze and rising local operating costs have made it increasingly difficult for the company to compete with cheaper imports during the first half of 2026.
The company, a subsidiary of GB Holdings Limited, said suppliers had reduced the credit available to it after Zimbabwe’s credit risk was downgraded in the first quarter, forcing some suppliers to demand payment upfront for raw materials.
The move affected factory utilisation and made some production uneconomic.
“Following the downgraded Zimbabwe credit risk in the first quarter of the year, key raw materials suppliers cut the credit extended to the company and demanded cash payment upfront leading to uneconomic factory throughput at General Beltings,” chairman Tichaona Mabeza said.
The company has responded by diversifying its product range, particularly into rubber moulded products where demand from the mining and agricultural sectors has been increasing.
The strategy is aimed at reducing the pressure created by price competition in General Beltings’ traditional markets while taking advantage of demand emerging from the mining and agricultural sectors.
The shift appears to be gaining traction.
General Beltings recorded volumes of 199 metric tonnes during the first half, up 10 percent from 181 tonnes in the comparable period, as customers responded to the company’s efforts to match competitor pricing in niche markets.
However, the wider group remained constrained by working capital shortages.
Total group volumes fell five percent to 420 tonnes, with Cernol Chemicals accounting for 221 tonnes compared with 257 tonnes previously.
Mabeza said the company had faced a difficult operating environment in which local manufacturers were increasingly competing against imported products that benefited from shorter working-capital cycles.
“Despite deliberate policy initiatives to promote the use of locally manufactured goods through import substitution, the increases in power, labour and utility costs rendered locally produced goods uncompetitive against relatively cheaper imports,” he said.
He added that local import agents were benefiting from shorter working-capital cycles, while manufacturers were carrying higher stock and interest costs.
The company is also facing the risk of losing skilled employees to regional competitors, with management noting that remuneration levels elsewhere in the region were attracting Zimbabwean technical personnel.
Despite the pressures, GB Holdings said investment in internal processes and customer relationships had helped the group strengthen its order book.
For General Beltings, the immediate challenge is now converting those orders into finished products.
The company has secured a US$50,000 order-financing facility from Stanbic Bank, of which US$43,000 remained outstanding at June 30.
The facility is specifically intended to finance raw-material purchases and fulfil confirmed customer orders.